Afghanistan Cancels Security Talks With United States

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Afghan President Hamid Karzai speaks during a joint news conference with NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen following a security handover ceremony at a military academy outside Kabul, Afghanistan, June 18, 2013. Sharon Behn

June 19, 2013

KABUL, AFGHANISTAN — Afghan President Hamid Karzai has canceled bilateral security talks with the United States, apparently to protest the opening of formal talks with the Taliban insurgent group. An Afghan statement said the manner in which the Taliban had opened their offices ran directly counter to assurances Washington had given Kabul.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai suddenly announced Wednesday that his government is pulling out of the bilateral talks with the United States. The aim of those talks is to lay out how many U.S. troops will remain in the country after 2014, and what role they will play in Afghanistan.
In a statement, Afghanistan's National Security Council said the talks were suspended due to the “contradiction between acts and statements” made by the United States regarding the peace process.
Analyst Kate Clark of the Afghanistan Analysts Network says Karzai's actions likely reflect the


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